From: gmadras@pinto.engr.ucdavis.edu (Giri)
Subject: Re: Did Sahaja Yoga kill my brother?
Newsgroups: alt.yoga
Date: 30 Oct 1995 23:23:15 GMT

soltemple@aol.com (Soltemple) writes:

>There are many psuedo "religious" groups that actually are dangerous. Not
>because they teach yoga or meditation, but because they take all personal
>power away from the individual.
        
Agreed.

>I'm not impressed with "yoga" teachers who expect you to follow them or bow
>down to anyone.

Have you considered that by bowing down you are bowing to the divine
in that person and not to the ego in that person ? Isn't this what is
meant by 'Namaste' ? The bowing down should be natural and not be forced,
of course.

>Many people practice yoga and meditation, yet still have strong family lives
>and do not live as hermits in this world.

        In my opinion, every yogi should live like a hermit. What do
I mean by hermit ? A hermit is one who has abandoned the fruits of
one's actions, and dedicates his action to the Divine. No one can
practice inaction because inaction is by itself an action. Material
possessions, by itself, don't amount to anything. It is not that they
are bad or good, it is the attachment to them which is bad, imo.
Besides, dedicating every action, the person should also be devoted 
to the Divine, and enjoy the action as a service, imo.
        This is however the ideal yogi, whose intention in life is
to achieve the realization of self, not someone who practices asanas
for 15 minutes a day.
        If the above paragraphs sounds dogmatic or pedantic, I am sorry
and I am open to opinions which cite Yogic literature which points 
that the above are incorrect.

>The main problem I had when I visited a local Sahaja yoga group was the fact
>that people were led to believe that the "spirit" came from outside of
>themselves...in particular from the "teacher",

        While I am in no way associated with Sahaja yoga or any of its
organizations, I should point that Shaja yoga, based on my understanding,
is based on the activation of Kundalini Shakti by an external teacher. 
Hence, though the spirit does not orginate from outside, it is in my 
opinion, activated by someone on the outside. This phenomenon is often
referred to as Shaktipat, and any one interested in this should read
the wonderful FAQ on kundalini by Kurt Kuetzer (sp?) available on the
net. Shaktipat is a well known phenomenon which has been around for
1000's of years and has not been 'invented' by someone. HAve exploitation
for money/sex occured based on this Shakti by various teachers ? Yes, but
tell me one technique which has not been exploited for their own needs ?

>a woman who did not impress me as being very loving or knowledgeable. The
>fact is....some of these people get their own sense of personal power from
>subjecting people like ourselves.

        True, there are many 'false gurus' and a true guru is hard to
come by. Discern and choose. This has been the teaching with regard 
to choosing a guru for centuries.

>Put her in an everyday situation, and you will find she is as human as anyone
>else, and might feel a little lost without people to "worship" her.

        True. Never worship someone other than God (if you believe in
one). Respect them, yes.

>Love to you and your family,
>Miriam

        Hence, while I respect your views based on personal experience
of Sahaja Yoga, I feel you should also consider the overall aspect.